It’s amazing the bounty that nature has to offer. And sometimes that comes in the form of what is commonly considered a weed. But I’m here to tell you that purple dead nettle is actually a healthy & delicious addition to your spring dishes. Plus it has medicinal benefits too!
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I feel like sometimes foraging gets a bad wrap. The first thing that comes to mind is getting all geared up and venturing deep into the woods, searching for hours, trying to find a needle in a haystack. And yes, that can be what foraging looks like for you…
But there’s also the other side of the coin. Even in suburbia, it’s amazing the things growing right there in your yard that can be a free and tasty treat.
What is Purple Dead Nettle?
I’ve seen purple dead nettle – also known as purple archangel – growing around me my entire life. That’s probably because it’s a member of the mint family, which means it’s terribly invasive. But once you realize the benefits of this little wonder plant, you might not mind it so much!
It’s called dead nettle because – unlike its stinging cousin – the nettles in this plant are dead, rendering it completely safe to eat freshly plucked from the ground.
This little “weed” is high in Vitamin C, iron, and fiber – plus the seeds are packed full of antioxidants.
How to Identify Purple Dead Nettle
Purple dead nettle is easily identified by its square stem, spade-shaped leaves, and purple tops.
Depending upon the quality of the soil, the lower leaves may be green, or all of the leaves may be purple. More purple leaves just means a phosphorus deficiency in the soil, but they’re all completely safe to eat.
It also has no toxic lookalikes, so there’s zero risk involved. The only thing it resembles is henbit – another tasty edible plant.
How to Enjoy Purple Dead Nettle
The entire plant is edible, though I usually just pinch off the tops and leave the rest of the stem sticking out of the ground. It will keep coming back as if pinching off a regular mint plant, and you can continue to harvest until mid-summer.
Purple dead nettle can be used anywhere you would use spinach or leafy green herbs. Toss them in a smoothie, put them in your salads, bake them into a quiche, or add them to a soup. The possibilities are endless, so get creative!
You can also quickly blanch and then freeze them for future use.
However, we prefer a tasty purple dead nettle pesto, that we freeze in portions, and enjoy all spring long.
Check out this recipe for our incredible purple dead nettle pesto.
Medicinal Uses
As a medicinal herb, purple dead nettle has astringent, purgative, diuretic, and diaphoretic properties. It’s also anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial.
Fresh leaves can be applied to wounds as a poultice.
You can also enjoy fresh or dry leaves as a tea. I’ve heard of someone curing a UTI with purple dead nettle tea, though I’ve not tried it myself. Beware though, the one and only potential side effect is that large quantities of this tea can have a laxative effect.
Other Considerations
Purple dead nettle is also a favorite of chickens. We’ve chopped it up and fed it to our baby chicks. They absolutely nuts for it!
Also, keep pollinators in mind as you harvest. This is one of the first flowers to bloom in early spring and the bees just love it. In mild climates, it even blooms all winter long, making it that much more important.
Learn more about planning a pollinator-friendly garden here.
What do you think? Are you ready to give purple dead nettle a try? I promise, I’ve eaten it and not died. You will be safe. Plus its free food, just staring back you. It’s time to make this “weed” work for you and enjoy mother nature’s bounty.
Be sure to check out these helpful articles for more foraging ideas…
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Do you have purple dead nettle growing in your area? Did you know that it was edible and medicinal? Have you cooked with it? Send us an email or leave a comment below! You can also let us know on our Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest pages.
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This is so awesome to know! We moved to a new home with an extensive garden, and are still figuring out what’s a weed and what’s a keeper. There was a nice patch of these lovelies and I thought they were pretty, so left them alone! LOL Nice to know I can add them to my tea cupboard! Thanks so much!
Purple dead nettle propagates by forming seeds in the flower bud. To avI’d having your PDN patch disappear, allow seed formation to occur. Once formed, you can shak out the seeds and resow them where you wish. They are an early spring t early summer plant!
This is the first I have heard of this being a good plant. I know that if it is in your lawn it is VERY hard to get rid of. Plant with care.
That is true, it does like to spread, but we have nothing but love for dead nettle. Lawns are a bit of an antiquated concept (non-native, difficult to maintain, no food for pollinators), so the more wild plants the better!
I have a liver detox, and in the program is dead nettle and I was ready to buy here in the US, but I couldn’t find. This is good stuff don’t do anything bad to it. It can clean you lymphatic system, help your liver etc. This will not harm you like the drugs you’re buying in the drug stores.
Can you dry it and store it that way? Or is it more of a freezing option?
Yes, you can dry them for later use.
Recipes would be great.
Thanks so much for your comment! Our favorite recipe is dead nettle pesto – https://www.lonelypinesfarm.com/purple-dead-nettle-pesto/
What is the best way to store it dried? Sealed hat or can it be vacuum sealed?
I’m sure it would be great vacuum sealed. We typically just store dried in a mason jar.
Thank you for the tip on color indicating phosphorus. I have a ton of this in my yard/garden and have always assumed the purple shoulders was a temperature thing such as with kale. We harvest this every spring now for about 7 years as an edible and for tea. I leave a lot for the bees too and they are the main reason I kept it even before I knew it was edible lol.
This grows like crazy in my backyard. I haven’t tried eating it yet but I’ve used it in a skin salve I made. Works like a charm. I also dried some for later.
can you find the benefits of inhaling, or smoking this plant. my great grams. had me inhaling it steamed , as small child, and when older a few puffs of it burnt. she said, ” our air was infected, and the spring winds could make us sick.” As an adult, i stopped this practice. Sad to report, she was right. I now suffer from, bird and bat poop fungus infections. In my lungs, from the air here in my area. Mississippi valley,
Oh God is Sooo Good<3 I was just wondering earlier today if and what these were! We looked up sweet violets, another "weed" to see how to make tea from and your page came up 🙂 Thanks so much for all the information! We'll definitely try your pesto and dandelion scones and jelly as well. ~With love and God bless
I read that you shouldn’t harvest after it has flowered or gone to seed because at that point it can be hard on the kidneys. Is this true?
I’ve heard that about stinging nettles, but I think it’s less of an issue for purple dead nettle. Though I would assume most things are better when harvested young and tender, before flowering.
I just did the Google Lens on this plant because it has never grown where it is currently. Plus, I had no idea what it was. But now that I do, I am totally stoked! I’m super excited to try it in some new recipes!
Dried dead nettle tea is a wonderful aid for hay fever type allergies and wheezing. I harvest in the spring, dry and grind and use all year long. A cup will control my asthma wheezing almost as quickly as I can drink it.
That’s amazing!
Considering our current ‘state of affairs’ , I just googled lensed this in a small area under a bay window and your page came up👍♥️. I will definitely be looking for any/all medicinal uses for this as I’ve started my own ‘apothecary’ station 😊. Medications are very costly, toxic and, will be hard to come by. I am using all that God, in his infinite wisdom, has given us in nature to replace medications. Thank you for the wonderful information.
Today I made a pesto with purple dead nettle, lemon balm, cleavers and kale from my backyard! (Sunflower seeds, lemon, olive oil, s&p and a spice blend, Parmesan cheese) -tomorrow I’m mixing w ricotta and making a puff pastry twisty app ! So excited! I just had to look up the medicinal properties, Thanks, love (((💖)))
That’s sounds like a delightful foraged treat. What an inspired mix of ingredients from your own backyard. Love it!
How long should the tea be taken for arterial and heart health?